Technical issues blamed in delayed Amber Alert for missing baby

Police blame late Amber Alert on tech issues

Technical issues delayed an Amber Alert for Halo Branton from going out when it was intended to, according to police.

You might have seen an Amber Alert on your phone on Sunday morning for Halo Branton, the baby who was found on the General Electric campus Sunday, and later pronounced dead at Ellis Hospital.

Investigators said they sent out the Amber Alert after deciding abduction was a possibility.

Technical issues delayed that alert going out when it was intended to. NewsChannel 13 received the alert from police long before the general public.

Major Dennis Schager with the New York state police says the alert was meant to go out to the public around 10 a.m., but didn’t get sent out until 11:15 a.m. due to technical issues.

Schager does not believe that one-hour delay is a factor in the baby not surviving, he said.

In the state of New York, an Amber Alert is issued when investigators believe a child under the age of 18 has been abducted or the child is believed to be in danger of serious bodily harm or death.

The state alert system and the Center for Missing and Exploited Children are working on a fix, he said.